Yaqub, Almohad Caliph
| Abu Yusuf al-Mansur | |
|---|---|
| Caliph of Morocco | |
 |
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| Reign | 1184–1199 |
| Predecessor | Abu Ya'qub Yusuf |
| Successor | Muhammad al-Nasir |
| Born | 1160 |
| Died | 1199 Marrakesh |
| Burial | Marrakesh |
| Dynasty | Almohad |
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
Abū Yūsuf Ya‘qūb al-Manṣūr (Arabic: ابو يوسف يعقوب المنصور) (c. 1160 Morocco – 23 January 1199 Marrakesh, Morocco), also known as Moulay Yacoub, was the third Almohad Caliph. Succeeding his father, al-Mansur reigned from 1184 to 1199. His reign was distinguished by the flourishing of trade, architecture, philosophy and the sciences, as well as by victorious military campaigns in which he was able to temporarily stem the tide of Christian Reconquista in the Iberian Peninsula.
Al-Mansur's father was killed in Portugal on 29 July 1184; upon reaching Seville with his father's body on 10 August, he was immediately proclaimed the new caliph. Al-Mansur vowed revenge for his father's death, but fighting with the Almoravids, who had been ousted from the throne, delayed him in Africa. After inflicting a new defeat on the Almoravids, he set off for the Iberian Peninsula to avenge his father's death.
His 13 July 1190 siege of Tomar, center of the Portuguese Templars failed to capture the fortress. However, further south he in 1191 recaptured a major fortress, Paderne Castle and the surrounding territory near Albufeira, in the Algarve - which had been controlled by the Portuguese army of King Sancho I since 1182. Having inflicted other defeats on the Christians and captured major cities, he returned to Morocco with three thousand Christian captives.
Upon Al-Mansur's return to Africa, however, Christians in Iberian Peninsula resumed the offensive, capturing many of the Moorish cities, including Silves, Vera, and Beja.
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